NBA Trade Rumors: Carmelo Anthony To Chicago? Bulls Will Make 'Best Offer' To Knicks! Will Their Former Coach Phil Jackson Accept?
NBA Trade Rumors about Carmelo Anthony will not wear down even though he could become a free agent. That's because the best possible destination for him does not have the cap space. Will the Knicks help strengthen conference rival Chicago Bulls?
They would if they had no choice. Phil Jackson has too much pride to be taken hostage and to end up holding nothing. If we are to take Carmelo Anthony's statements seriously (last January, from NY Daily News):
"(Winning a championship is) the only thing I care about. Anything else is irrelevant to me as far as when it comes to basketball," Anthony said after practice in Greenburgh. "A championship is the only thing that's on my mind.
"That's my motivating factor. Nothing else even motivates me anymore, just that. I mean, it's hard to say at this very moment how it affects me (in the future), but for me, I gotta keep that motivation into the 'now.' And then when that time comes, you deal with that situation then."
Straight up, it should be declared that the current New York Knicks line up will not win the championship. Not even if Phil Jackson coaches the team himself.
It's been pretty clear that the only way he could win a championship next year is if he joins the Chicago Bulls without gutting them the way the Knicks did when they acquired him.
Basketball Insiders.com has actually found a reasonable way to do that:
"The Bulls would need to send out approximately $17 million in salary to acquire Anthony's $21.4 million contract before July - but such a move is only legal if Anthony opts into his $23.3 million salary for 2014-15.
Carlos Boozer's $15.3 million would be the primary player going from Chicago to New York. The Bulls never go under the cap this summer and avoid paying Boozer $16.8 million not to play (via amnesty); the Knicks add a player whose contract expires before 2015.
None of the late-signed players on Chicago's roster are eligible to be traded until July (Ronnie Brewer, Mike James, Greg Smith and Lou Amundson). Still $1.7 million short of a workable deal with the Knicks, the Bulls would have to include either Mike Dunleavy ($3.2 million) or both Jimmy Butler ($1.1 million) and Tony Snell ($1.4 million).
Dunleavy is set to earn $3.3 million next season, his contract also ending prior to 2015.
A package of Boozer, Dunleavy, two 2014 first-round picks (16 and 19) and perhaps a future first should be a workable package for both the Knicks and Bulls."
Phil Jackson can see the wisdom of that. Carmelo has already declared that he is not willing to wait. Then he won't see eye to eye with the Zen Master who has a five year window. This trade will also not hamper the Knicks grand plans in 2015-an even juicier free agent class with LaMarcus Aldridge, Kevin Love, Rajon Rondo, Paul Millsap and even Al Jefferson can all be pursued since the players they're getting are both expiring contracts.
The Zen Master can give Melo his chance in 2014-15, then he can contend just one season later.
Sounds like a plan.